The Ring of Protection
by SPOTTY
Summary: MORE ADDED!!! Loops gets in some trouble with her ex Anthony. He wants the ring he gave her back, but she paid
1. Chapter One

Now I'm like everyone else, *grins*. I made up my own newsies names. Loops, Skip, and Switch are mine. So don't take them, unless you ask for my permission and credit me. Skip is all MINE! Hehe… Go 'head and read what I've got so far and remember to review!  
  
Chapter One  
  
"Oof!"  
  
"Where is it?"  
  
"Ugh!"  
  
"Come on."  
  
"Let… go… of… me!"  
  
"Not till you give me back da ring," Anthony calmly replied.  
  
"I paid… fa… half'a it!" Loops screamed back in between getting kicked and punched.  
  
He shook his head. "It ain't like I enjoy havin' Oscar here soak the livin' daylights outta ya, especially since youse is a goil, but I ain't got all night. I need dat ring."  
  
Loops ducked underneath Oscar's legs and ran past Anthony. The sky was a dark shade of purple and the white, lightness of the clouds made the streets look dreamy. But Loops had no time to look. She was just a few feet from the alley they had been in when she felt a pang of pain pierce through her left leg. She fell and grasped the leg, feeling the blood run through her fingers. She groaned as she pulled herself down the street.  
  
Anthony came up behind her. "I wasn't plannin' on shootin' ya till afta' I got da ring." He took Loops' arm and twisted it back. He moaned, "Where is it Loops?" He let her arm drop and picked up the other arm, looking at her fingers. "Nothin'," he mumbled. "NOTHING!" He threw Loops' arm back down. "Where is it?" he yelled.  
  
Loops closed her eyes and thought. "I put it…"  
  
"Where?" he boomed.  
  
"Shut up fa a second and let me tink!" she screamed back.  
  
Anthony's nostrils flared but he held in his rage. "Go 'head."  
  
Loops nodded. "Oh yeah, I chucked it in da sewer."  
  
"You… you did what?"  
  
"Well, ya made me angry."  
  
"Dat goil was just… der. It wasn't nuttin' Loops." He shook his head.  
  
"Whateva', I ain't got ya ring no more. Ya gonna have ta find it yaself." She tried picking herself up but couldn't. Her leg was in most a deadly pain and she couldn't feel her arms.  
  
Anthony chuckled. "And how do youse expect getting' back ta ya brudda' eh?"  
  
Loops turned her head back and looked at Anthony. His eyes were glowing. "Ya always tryin' ta start trouble ain't ya?" Loops inquired.  
  
He shrugged. "Maybe."  
  
"Well, I'll get back ta Brooklyn somehow." She squirmed around on the ground.  
  
Oscar came around in front and stopped her from going further. "Do ya want me ta dump her ova' da Brooklyn Bridge?" he asked Anthony.  
  
"Nah," Anthony replied, "let her crawl back ta her brudda'." He put his foot on her back. "Listen," he told her, "da next time I see's ya, I want dat ring. If ya don't got it, Oscar will get ta throw ya ova' da bridge." He looked up at the sky. "No," he rethought, "take her to her brudda'. Leave her at da corner dat his lodgin' house is at."  
  
Oscar grinned. "Right." He picked Loops up and she started screaming.  
  
Anthony smiled and took a handkerchief from his pocket. Then he tied her around her mouth. "Always so loud," he grinned. He lightly patted her cheek and let Oscar take her to Brooklyn.  
  
Read on… 


	2. Chapter Two

1 Chapter Two  
  
"Come on ya slow pokes! Get off ya asses and sell!" Spot poked at his friends in their beds with his cane.  
  
"Aw Spot…"  
  
"Aw Spot nuttin' Skip!" Spot tugged at Skip's bed sheets.  
  
After falling, Skip rubbed his side. Spot chuckled. "Dat ain't funny," Skip mumbled.  
  
Spot walked from bunk to bunk, waking up the newsboys, and then stopped at Loops' bed. Vacant. He frowned. "If anybody sees Loops, tell me. I got a bone ta pick wit dat goil!"  
  
Everyone mumbled as they got up. "Spot!" Cinch ran in the room. "Spot!" she screamed again, "Loops' out by da corna'! She been beat up real bad!" Everyone seemed to wake up after that as they all jumped up and raced outside.  
  
A crowd of people surrounded Loops. Just before Oscar had left her, he had kicked her in the head, not just for fun, but also to knock her out for a bit, until someone saw her. "Lemme trew!" Spot pushed through the people. He saw Loops and his heart raced. He knelt beside her and held her hand. "Somebody get a docta' or sumpin'!" he screamed. Some of the newsies in the back of the crowd darted off to get help. Spot brushed his fingers through Loops' hair. He shook his head. "Always getting' yaself inta trouble."  
  
Skip pushed through everyone in the crowd after he had gotten himself up off the floor in the lodging house and ran outside. His eyes got big. "Oh my God," he whispered as he fell on his knees beside Spot. "Who did dis to her?" he inquired.  
  
Spot shook his head. "Prolly dat dumbass Anthony."  
  
"Is he still botherin' her?"  
  
Spot tilted his head slightly. He softly pounded his fist on Skip's head. "Hello? Anybody der? Ain't it obvious?"  
  
Skip's shoulders dropped.  
  
"Dis ain't some show!" Spot screamed at the crowd, "Go the hell away!" The people shook their heads and scattered into the streets of Brooklyn. Spot put a hand on Skip's shoulder. He trusted him, more than anyone else. He was his best friend. "Youse is marryin' my sista' Skip. I want ta know why youse ain't keepin' up wit her."  
  
Skip sighed deeply. "You know Spot, I ain't good wit goils."  
  
Spot chuckled and half-smiled. "Yeah, ya ain't, but wit Loops ya are."  
  
"She ain't said nuttin' about Anthony lately," Skip stated.  
  
Spot thought for a minute. "Ay," he began, "you're right. I wonda' if it is him."  
  
Loops suddenly stirred. "Stop," she grumbled.  
  
Skip brought his face close to hers. As her eyes opened, he kissed her lightly on the lips. "Ay," he whispered.  
  
"Ay," she replied.  
  
Spot got up as peered through the people and down the streets. "Where is dat damn docta'?"  
  
Skip put his arms under Loops and picked her up. He walked her back to the lodging house and placed her on top of her bed. Spot waited outside so he could signal the doctor. "What happened?" Skip inquired.  
  
She shook her head. "I don't wanna talk about it," she moaned.  
  
Skip nodded. "Well, when youse do, tell me."  
  
"I love you," she grinned. She raised her head and kissed Skip passionately.  
  
"I love you too," he replied as they broke their kiss. He rubbed his nose against hers.  
  
She giggled. "Ya know, I bet Spot'd laugh at us for bein' so corny."  
  
He laughed and shook his head. "He'll be mad first since youse is getting' da bed all damp." He looked at the blood that was running all over the bed. He brushed some hair from her face and took her hand just as Spot came in with a doctor. "How ya feelin'?" Spot inquired as he picked up Loops' chin and eyed her face.  
  
"I'm… great." She rolled her eyes.  
  
The doctor tilted his head and scratched his chin. He bent down and wiped off some blood from where Loops had been shot. He got closer and looked at the tiny hole. "Amazing," he mused.  
  
"What is?" Skip inquired.  
  
"This." The doctor motioned Spot and Skip to look at Loops' leg.  
  
"Ay," Skip inferred, "dat's my fiancé's leg youse is lookin' at!"  
  
"No," the doctor mumbled. "Look at the hole. I've seen such things as this only once. It's… strange. It's almost as if she weren't shot. It's as if the bullet were drilled inside the leg. See how cleanly it just went in there?"  
  
Skip looked up real close and found that he was getting dizzy. "Skip!" Loops yelled, "You know you can't stand lookin' at blood. Come back up here."  
  
He nodded. "I'd much prefer it."  
  
Spot gazed at the hole as the doctor wiped it clean again. "Yeah," he began, "I seen enough bullet holes ta know dat dis one ain't normal."  
  
"Listen," Loops began after giving Skips' cheek a quick peck, "can we get to helpin' me out? I'm in some pain right now."  
  
The doctor nodded frantically. "Right." He studied her arms. "It looks like you got lucky. This one," he pointed to the right one, "is broken. But the left is fine." After tending to it and slinging it, he moved down to the leg. He scratched his chin again. He lifted the leg up and looked underneath it. There was a tiny bruise. "It's a bruise," he pointed out, "which means it's at the bottom of the leg. I'll have to cut through this other end, where the bruise is, and get the bullet out." He shook his head. "I hate this."  
  
"What what?" Loops exclaimed.  
  
The doctor shrugged. "Surgery. Well, it's not really surgery. Let me bind this. I want you to get some sleep and come over and see me tomorrow."  
  
"Couldn't it kill me or sumpin'?" she inquired.  
  
The doctor replied, "I'll get it out soon enough. You'll be fine."  
  
"Ya sure?" Skip asked.  
  
The doctor nodded. He wrapped up Loops' leg and left with his supplies. He handed Spot a card before he left. "This is where I live," he told him. "Now, your sister seems to have been shot with a most confusing source. I told you, it seems like it was drilled in there." He scratched his chin. "Unfortunately, I hate to say this, but the last person I saw this with died."  
  
Spot's shoulders dropped and his eyes got wide. "What?"  
  
"Well, the person was shot in their heart, much worse of course."  
  
Spot nodded but still looked sad. "So what can we do?" he asked.  
  
"Nothing. I think she'll be OK but the source of this… it's strange. It's inconceivable." He scratched his chin.  
  
"Will ya stop scratchin' ya chin, it's botherin' me."  
  
The doctor put his hands in his pockets. "Sorry."  
  
"Go 'head."  
  
The doctor went on, "I looked into this. In the earlier years of creation, there were wizards who made special weapons for the warriors who served for their King, who was for the good of the people…"  
  
Spot chuckled. "Come on, I don't believe in that bull shit. Wizards?" He shook his head.  
  
"Many don't believe. But you have to." He put a hand on Spot's shoulder and added, "For your sister's sake."  
  
Spot took a deep breath and nodded.  
  
"Now, the wizards only used it to destroy their enemies. And it was only the good side that had the powers. But when the other sides figured out that their battle was fixed with magic, they got some of the villagers into wizardry. Then both sides fought against each other. The wrong side won unfortunately. Now, many people use wizardry. Whoever shot your sister must have used some kind of wizardry." He scratched his chin.  
  
Spot grabbed his neck. "Stop!" His eyes widened and he let go of the doctor. "Sorry."  
  
The doctor nodded. "One of the problems with reality," he grumbled.  
  
Spot cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"Listen, just bring her over tomorrow afternoon. I'll be there all day. I'll tend to the hole and give it a good cleansing. I know a few things about magic myself." He winked.  
  
Spot shrugged. "Good, just help me sista', dat's all's I ask."  
  
The doctor left and Spot went back in with Skip and Loops. Skip was bent down beside the bed, lips locked with Loops'. Spot rolled his eyes. "Alright, dat's enough'a dat." Skip got up and smiled. Loops ran her fingers through her hair. "Ain't nuttin' ta be embarrassed about. Are ya's gonna get embarrassed when youse is married too?" Spot inquired.  
  
Loops smiled at Skip. "We won't have to kiss in public, we'll do it enough when we're alone." She winked and Skip blushed.  
  
Spot faked a cough. "Dat ain't sumpin' ya wanna hear from ya sista'." Loops grinned and pulled Skip down beside her. She grabbed his shirt and gave him a juicy kiss. Spot rolled his eyes again. "Can we stop wit all dis kissin'?"  
  
"Oh Spot," Loops giggled, "get a goil."  
  
"Well maybe I don't want a goil." He crossed his arms.  
  
Cinch walked in the room. She raised her eyebrows. "Ay Spot," she said, winking.  
  
He shook his head. "Whaddaya want Cinch?"  
  
"I just came ta see how my best bud is doin'." She walked over to Loops and stared down at her. "How ya feelin'?" she inquired.  
  
Loops shrugged. "I'm OK. Me leg itches wit pain dough. And dis arm," she looked down at it, "I can't feel it at all. So," she began, "I could be betta'."  
  
Cinch threw her arms up. "What's a goil gotta do ta get some good days right?"  
  
Loops nodded.  
  
Spot shook his head. "Ay Cinch, I tink I heard dat Racetrack was comin' down here. Why don't ya go check?"  
  
"Fa you Spot," Cinch grinned, "sure."  
  
Spot let out a deep breath as Cinch left the room. "Dat goil."  
  
Read on… 


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three  
  
Skip placed Loops gently on the floor and changed the bloody bed sheets. Then he picked Loops back up on the bed and kissed her cheek. "I wish dis didn't happen," he whispered.  
  
She nodded. "Right."  
  
Spot had left a little while ago when Racetrack had arrived with a few other Manhattan newsies. They immediately all started playing poker and Loops hated missing out on the fun.  
  
"I don't tink dat da doctor'd mind if I just got up fa a lil bit and played some…"  
  
Skip shook his head. "No. You ain't gettin' up till youse is all betta'."  
  
Loops rolled her eyes, complaining, "I can take pain. Lemme beat Race."  
  
"You always beat him," Skip retorted.  
  
As if on cue, Racetrack walked in the room with Dutchy following. Skip felt a pang of jealousy. Dutchy had been with Loops before they had met and always saw him as everything better than he was. "How's it goin'?" Race inquired. He added, "And she don't always beat me."  
  
Loops ignored his comment. She outstretched her arms and the two newsies took their turn of giving Loops a hug. When they had both hugged her, she answered, "I'm just dandy. I been much betta' dough."  
  
"Seein' as how ya look, I'll agree," Race stated.  
  
"How's it goin' Dutch?" Loops asked as she sat up in the bed.  
  
He shrugged. "I'm ok. We was all real worried when we heard about you. Youse like a sista' to us all ya know?"  
  
Loops grinned.  
  
"Don't take dat as a free meal," Race protested.  
  
Skip scrunched his eyebrows together. "What's up wit you?"  
  
Racetrack threw his hands at them. "Nuttin'," he said and walked out the room in anger.  
  
Loops watched the doorway. "Dutch?"  
  
Dutchy sighed, "He was real worried, just like we all was. Somebody told us you was dead and…" His voice trailed off as he took off his hat and studied it.  
  
Loops bellowed, "Who said I was dead?"  
  
Dutchy shrugged. "Well, someone implied dat you was dead. He said dat ya body was all… I donno."  
  
Skip tilted his head and studied Dutchy's expression. He still liked Loops. It was very obvious. He changed the subject, "How's Manhattan?"  
  
Jack walked in the room. "It's fine," he stated, grinning.  
  
Loops held her arms and Jack gave her a hug. "Good ta see ya. You guys neva' come 'ere anymore."  
  
"Well when we's around you ain't," he retorted.  
  
She shrugged.  
  
"So what's da story?" Jack went right down to what Skip wanted to know.  
  
"I just had a lil run-in is all." Loops looked down at the sheets. "Dun mean nuttin'," she explained.  
  
More to come… 


End file.
